CREATIVE ADVENTURES — 50

Imagine That You Have Multiple Personalities Within You

In this thought experiment, you will imagine that you have multiple personalities within you.

A split personality refers to a mental disorder where an individual has two or more distinct personalities. However, in this exercise, please note that I will not be referring to this mental illness. Instead, I consider having multiple personalities as a natural phenomenon we all might experience.

Please respond to the following prompts:

1. Imagine that there are multiple selves inside you. How many different selves can you name? Create a list. Provide them unique names and describe each. You might also sketch them if you wish. Remember: The thoughts, actions, and behaviors of each personality are different. They might also have different moods, genders, or vocabulary.
2. When does each self assert himself or herself? Under which circumstances? Which one is most annoying? Which one is the most prone to self-harm? Which one is the most optimistic? Which one is driven by fear, jealousy, or greed?
3. Imagine that you have a button where you can control each of these personalities — you can amplify them or shut them down. How would you use this power? Write down a story where you use this button to take control of your life and/or emerging circumstances.
4. Imagine that one of your personalities is inherently dangerous — for you or for other people. Write down a thriller story describing how this personality is activated and how you deal with it.
5. Get your notebook and pencil, and open up a fresh page. Write down all the different roles, identities, and voices within yourself. Try to start with your most dominant roles and then shift to less dominant ones. For example, “I am a teacher.”, “I am a writer”, “I am a mother”, “I am an entrepreneur”, “I am a nomad.”, “I am a vegetarian”, “I am an influencer”, “I am a YouTuber”, “I am an investor”, “I am a lover”, “I am a dreamer”, “I am a pacifist”, “I am a fashionista”, “I am a doodler”, “I am an artist”, “I am a podcaster.” etc. Explain each role in a sentence: Why and how do you assume this role?
6. On another fresh page, think about which new roles and identities you would like to develop in the new decade. Make a list of all of them. Justify why you want to assume these new roles and explain how they are core to your values and identity.
7. In her novel ‘Black Milk’, Elif Shafak identifies multiple selves and voices within herself. She calls them “Thumbelinas” or “finger women”. For example, “Miss High-browed Cynic” loves to question everything and wants to read all the time. “Dame Dervish” is her Sufi self and focuses on spiritual growth. “Mama Rice Pudding” wants to be a mother and have babies. Some other selves include “Little Miss Practical”, “Blue Belle Bovary”, “Lord Poton”, and “Milady Ambitious Chekhovian”. This inner harem of finger women comprises the many facets and multiple selves of Elif Shafak. Each self comes with a distinct personality and voice, unique conversations and outfits, and strong opinions of her own. Shafak tries to juggle and honor all these different aspects of her personality while trying to find her core self and oneness. Now, you will write about the multiple selves inside you. Give them unique names, voices, and personas. Think about the fears and desires of each.
8. Write a letter from each of these selves to yourself. In each letter, the character will summarize their unique point of view, where they are coming from, what their priorities are, and how you can best take care of that self and their needs.
9. Elif Shafak believes “to be human means to live with an orchestra of conflicting voices and mixed emotions”. How will you honor and balance these multiple selves inside you? How do you deal with the conflicts, contradictions, and chaos created by this choir of discordant voices? How will you achieve harmony among them? Create a 10-minute dialog that captures the debates and conversations among these multiple selves.
10. Write a story that captures your experiences with and transitions among these multiple selves. What happens when a particular self takes over and takes up residence in your soul? What happens when this self gets bored and goes away? Who comes next? How do you change? How do you humor these multiple selves and personalities? How do you protect yourself from the potentially destructive tendencies of each self? How do you achieve your sense of unity and sanity?
11. How can you be a happy individual who is fully aware of and in harmony with his or her multiple talents and many selves? How can you design your life and career so that you can unleash the diversity and richness of these multiple selves and their talents? Write a manifesto or an essay that addresses these questions. Create at least 10 ideas and small actions you can implement in your daily life.
12. Draw a flower of your life. This flower should capture the multiplicity and richness of your life. Each petal will summarize a different aspect and priority of your life.

Fahri Karakas is the author of the Self-making Studio. You can explore more here.